FISH CROW PALM WARBLER (YELLOW, EASTERN) Harlequin Duck Ruffed Grouse Red-throated Loon Common Loon Pied-billed Grebe Horned Grebe Red-necked Grebe American Bittern Great Egret Black-crowned Night Heron Osprey Bald Eagle Sharp-shinned Hawk Broad-winged Hawk Virginia Rail Sora Common Moorhen Sandhill Crane Black-bellied Plover Spotted Sandpiper Solitary Sandpiper Greater Yellowlegs Lesser Yellowlegs Upland Sandpiper Pectoral Sandpiper Dunlin Wilson's Snipe American Woodcock Common Tern Snowy Owl Eastern Phoebe Blue-headed Vireo Purple Martin Tree Swallow Northern Rough-winged Swallow Cliff Swallow Barn Swallow Brown Creeper House Wren Golden-crowned Kinglet Ruby-crowned Kinglet Hermit Thrush Wood Thrush Brown Thrasher Yellow-rumped Warbler Pine Warbler Palm Warbler (Yellow) Black-and-white Warbler Common Yellowthroat Eastern Towhee Chipping Sparrow Field Sparrow White-crowned Sparrow Rose-breasted Grosbeak Rusty Blackbirds Purple Finch Pine Siskin.
I think we can safely say the word spring now here in the Hamilton Study area. This week has been more productive than the last and according to sources south, the warblers have now reached the upper states and are just a day or two away from getting here so saddle up people. This week our FISH CROW sightings still go on with birds exhibiting nesting and courting behaviour in several locations around the lake. Two crows were seen in courtship behaviour at La Salle Park, birds have been reported around Canada Centre for inland waters, near Walkers Line and Lakeshore in Burlington and one very skulky crow was moving through the forest checking out trees at Sedgewick Park in Oakville. Many of these birds called only briefly, I think trying not to draw attention from American Crows who last time we had a nesting scenario raided the nest of the FISH CROW. Nonetheless there are still birds around. A nice find last Sunday was a "Yellow" Palm Warbler which hung out at Bronte Bluffs for the day. New arrivals this week include Sora and Common Moorhen heard along with Virginia Rail in the Safari Road Marsh last Sunday morning. At Kerncliffe Park a lucky individual flushed an American Bittern and managed to capture a photo, another one was seen over a park in Stoney Creek and still another was heard briefly at the marsh at 11th Road East in Saltfleet. Bittern seems to be a tough bird to get in these parts A Black-bellied Plover was a new arrival at the field on 5th Road East just south of Powerline Road. Yesterday up to 21 Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs were present here. A Solitary Sandpiper was seen at the flooded field at 8th line and Britannia in North Oakville/Milton. Not far from there a Pectoral Sandpiper was seen with Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs on James Snow Parkway in a flooded field. Spotted Sandpiper and five Dunlin have been present at Windermere Basin all week last being seen yesterday. Upland Sandpipers have returned to their traditional nesting site on South Grimsby Road 15 just south of Mud street. Patience is necessary as they blend into the field and are quite often seen at the field back behind the barn located there. Common Terns are now back at Windermere Basin in force. Blue-headed Vireo, was reported from Sedgewick Park in Oakville, from Bronte Bluffs and from Edgelake Park in Stoney Creek in the last day. Cliff Swallows are new to arrive with birds being seen at Canada Centre for Inland Waters and Windermere Basin. Tree, Northern Rough-winged and Barn Swallows are here in numbers. A Wood Thrush was a welcome sighting at a back yard in Burlington this week. Brown Thrasher and Eastern Towhee numbers sightings grew this week with birds being reported coming into feeders in a few places. Migrants yesterday at Edgelake Park in Stoney Creek include House Wren, Yellow-rumped, Pine, Palm and Black-and-White Warbler. At Sedgewick Park in Oakville, Pine warblers could be heard singing and a Palm Warbler was a new arrival. Pine Warblers were also reported from LaSalle Park in Burlington, from Arkendo in Mississauga and one very bright individual coming into suet on 11th Concession East in Flamborough. A Common Yellowthroat was a new arrival at Shoreacres Park in Burlington a few days ago. A pair of Rose-breasted Grosbeaks were reported from Sedgewick Park in Oakville from a week ago. Ten Rusty Blackbirds were seen and heard at Lakeside Park in Mississauga. The Niagara Peninsula Hawkwatch season at Beamer is winding down with the Broadwings coming through at a steady pace last week. Other raptors include Osprey, Bald Eagle and Sharp-shinned Hawk. Sandhill Cranes seem to be seen with more regularity at this location. In the odds and sods this week, a female Harlequin Duck has returned to the waters just east of the Burlington Ship Canal where it was hanging out with a number of Long-tailed Ducks. Blue-winged Teal were present at the flooded field on 8th Road East just south of Ridge Road yesterday in Saltfleet. Ruffed Grouse could be heard drumming at Hyde Tract in Flamborough, near Westover and one was seen picking up grit along Lennon Road in north Flamborough last Sunday. The bay and the west end of the lake have numerous Horned Grebes at present. Surely an Eared Grebe could be hiding amongst them. Other birds seen on the Hamilton Bay include Common Loon, Pied-billed and Red-necked Grebe. A good vantage point is from La Salle Marina. Great Egret and Black-crowned Night Heron were at Windermere Basin yesterday. Wilson's Snipe and American Woodcock can both be heard and seen displaying at 10th Road East near the railway tracks just south of Ridge Road. Snowy Owls are still being seen with one yesterday on the light post near Tollgate Pond on the QEW. Another one was reported earlier in the week at the Casablanca exit on the QEW. Eastern Phoebes are setting up shop in a number of places. Brown Creepers, Winter Wren, Golden and Ruby-crowned Kinglets continue to move through this week. Chipping Sparrows can be seen in various locations and at feeders. Field Sparrows seem to be back in full song and one stopped at a feeder in Stoney Creek adding another great species to a yard list. Crisp White-crowned Sparrows could be seen long the bank at Windermere Basin yesterday. Nine Purple Finch were seen and heard singing at the Safari Road Marsh last Sunday. Two Pine Siskins were an unexpected surprise at Shoreacres in Burlington mid-week. That's what I have for this week. It's hard to co-ordinate sightings from all sources (email, list serves, ebird, text, facebook etc etc) so if I have missed yours I apologize. Send your sightings along here and as always if you feel you have something significant send it along to the local list serve or Ontbirds. It's that time of year when everything is on the table. Keep your feeders stocked for unusual birds coming through in the next couple weeks. As I sit here and type the report it is snowing so birds need the extra boost. Have a great week Cheryl Edgecombe weary tax preparer --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) - the provincial birding organization. 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